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I OPENED MY eyes and instantly wished I hadn’t The headache had grown sharp blades and stabbed the didn’t look familiar, but the smell in the air was The exquisite aro alcohol, and that weird "medicine" flavor told me I was in a hospital Also the IV in iveaway My hand rested on the sheath of my saber Someone had put my sword in bed with me

Why did it hurt so ia accent drifted through enteel Southern dialect that refused to die out and sed consonants on the ends of words so "better" and "over" ca by the intonation in the voice, the doctor was in and not too happy

What else was new? I had woken up like this to unfaes more times than I could remember The only question hich hospital had I ended up in this tiood doctor was sitting in a wheelchair talking to another patient or maybe his helper, I couldn’t really see His voice was quiet and soothing, and I couldn’t quiteIf I squinted, I could sort of read his lips Intracranial he toldstretched in nized his face in a flash of pain Doolittle Why didn’t I recognize his voice? Wait, if Doolittle was here, that meant ere in the Keep We couldn’t be in the Keep Our thirty days weren’t up I opened my mouth to call out No words came out

Okay, if I couldn’t talk, I would sit up

My back refused to obey Panic pinched s, ers and toes I could feel Sarrat’s sheath under et them to move My muscles were out of sync with my mind

I was paralyzed

No No, no, no I lived by my sword I couldn’t be paralyzed I couldn’t

A word surfaced froe Hee inside the skull was called intracranial I knew this I kneas bad I just couldn’t fight through the headache to what itopen and a woman stuck her head in "Doolittle?"

Doolittle turned his chair toward her and the look on his face said he would bite her head off if she ithin reach Serious business

"Trisha asked if you could spare a minute for some paperwork"